Tip for using Advanced Segments in Google Analytics

Despite the fact that many people are experiencing a drop-off in their keyword data in Analytics, due to the volume of (not set) and (not provided) results, which are in turn caused by logged-in Google account holders performing searches, keyword research remains very much a useful part of the daily Analytics routine.

To avoid getting results that are clouded by lack of keyword data, Advanced Segments can be used to filter out the (not set) and (not provided) results. The process is simple:

1. click the 'Advanced Segments' button at the top of the page;
2. on the next page, click 'Add Segment' - it's on the right hand side, under the box of 'Custom Segments';
3. for the first filter, select 'Exclude', and look for 'Keyword' in the green box;
4. type (not set) in the text edit box;
5. click 'Add OR Statement' and repeat the steps to add (not provided);
6. click 'Save Segment' - you will also have to enter a name!

The segment will then be applied, and only the data with meaningful keyword values set will be shown. If other filters are being applied, they must be removed. If that creates an issue (i.e. if you want non-bounce traffic) then you will need to add the filter conditions to the 'KW' filter that you have just created.

Top tip : these filters can also be used to target specific traffic profiles by Keyword - Keyword Cracker subscribers will already have received a specific how-to for using Advanced Segments for Keyword Research!

The Three Aspects of Search Engine Marketing Explained

Today, I received an interesting email entitled Back to Basics with SEM from Website Magazine. If you're not signed up, and are a web site owner or search engine marketer, then you need to! (They don't even pay me to tell you that, either...)

Even if you don't want to give away your email address to receive yet another inbox magazine, it's worth taking a look at the Back to Basics with SEM article. With all the anxiety over Google updates, shifts in the landscape of paid search inclusion, and the like, some of the basic definitions are often overlooked.

So, for a 30 second scan-read, or a more in depth 5 minutes of your time, it's worth remembering that SEM is not the same as SEO, and that there are other traffic acquisition strategies out there.